The Schools of Excellence in
Arts Education Awards

Presented by ArtsEd Washington in partnership with
the Association of Washington School Principals

ArtsEd Washington, in partnership with the Association of Washington School Principals, presents the annual Schools of Excellence in Arts Education Awards. This prestigious distinction recognizes schools that include the arts as an essential part of their students’ education, providing a creative learning environment for outstanding student achievement through the development of exemplary arts education. Inspired by a program of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the awards are open to all K-12 schools throughout Washington State.

2014 Winner: Avanti High School

Avanti High School in Olympia is the winner of the fourth annual Schools of Excellence in Arts Education Award, honoring K-12 schools providing exemplary arts education to their students.

Avanti High School in Olympia School District is a small alternative high school of 156 students and 7 faculty. For the past fourteen years, Avanti has been integrating arts education throughout all subjects to balance and deepen the learning experience for students.

Nomination/Application Process:

The ArtsEd Washington and Association of Washington School Principals Schools of Excellence in Arts Education Awards are designed to honor individual schools. Nominations may be submitted by the school principal, a teacher, or a district administrator familiar with the curriculum. Nominate your school for the 2015 award by April 10!

Program Requirements:

Program eligibility requires applying schools to:

Offer comprehensive education in the arts, specifically teaching at least three of the four state-defined arts disciplines – dance, music, theatre, and visual arts – as specific disciplines, as well as having arts components integrated into other subject areas.

Use creative approaches to learning, provide appropriate learning environments for teaching the arts, and recognize that the arts are critical and essential to education.

Encourage parental participation in and/or support of the creative education of their children in a variety of ways.

Deliver various opportunities for learning about other cultures through the arts to students.

Promote community connections that build value and respect for the community by offering students diverse experiences beyond the classroom. Community arts and cultural partners should play an active role in the provision of the school’s arts programming.